fashion

Spring 2013 Lookbook Shoot Behind the Scenes

March 8, 2013 By Chie 1 Comment

Today turned out to be a really beautiful day with warm Spring weather, around 20 degrees Celsius We did a Spring 2013 lookbook shoot at a green garden in Kanagawa prefecture today. We could not have asked for better weather.

This lookbook was, unfortunately, prepared in rush, since I was gone for the past two weeks to NY. Once I got back last week, I worked hard at night to get stuff done for the shoot, from sewing sample pieces for the shoot, planning a makeup and styling options and coordinating with other team members. I was a bit nervous how it would turn out, but everyone was sweet and things went smoothly. Here is some sneak peak of what was in behind the scenes of the photoshoot.

Filed Under: behind the scenes, blog, blogs Tagged With: 2013, catalog, fashion, lookbook, photoshoot, spring, vivatveritas

Shop Update: Spring Lace Tops

January 28, 2013 By Chie 4 Comments

Top: Floral lace top (via etsy), Bottom: Sheer black lace top (via etsy)

Floral headband (via etsy)

The shop is finally updated with new pieces (etsy shop too!)! I made these two Spring tops with lace inserts in the middle. The top falls to hip line with a slight flare, like peplum. They are loose fitted and very comfortable!

More is coming to the shop very soon. Since my new sewing machine has arrived, I am super motivated to try different fabrics on my machine. I will write a more detailed review on the industrial machine soon. It is amazing! So fast and powerful. I wish I would have gotten it sooner. For now, here is the picture of my new machine!

ChieSignature

Filed Under: blog, blogs, creation, shop update Tagged With: clothes, etsy, fashion, handmade, lace, shop, top, vivatveritas

Sketch Everyday

January 14, 2013 By Chie 4 Comments

What is your New Year’s resolution for 2013? Mine is to practice sketching everyday. I wanted to make a goal that I can work toward everyday. After working on the dancers’ costumes last year, I saw my desperate need for better sketching. When talking with the dancer it became increasing difficult to finalize the design, mostly because the lack of my drawing/sketching skills. I took art in high school and I liked it very much but once I went into the “real world” with jobs and what not I just didn’t have time to sit down and practice drawing.

As a starter, I decided to imitate the fashion drawing from the book, Dress Patterns by Adele P. Margolis. It was a gift from Andy’s grandmother last Christmas. It is an awesome book by the way, if you want to learn about pattern drafting and manipulation. The book includes a lot of illustrations, and I was attracted by the vintage feel of the drawings. So I’m spending 5-10 minutes everyday replicating drawings from the book. Hopefully over time, I will be able to draw on my own.

So here are my sketches from last week…

After a week of sketching, I definitely feel more comfortable than before. Sketching the fingers I found the most difficult. Also the face, with a tiny little bit of difference, a woman’s face can look really scary!!

Filed Under: blog, blogs, fashion illustration Tagged With: fashion, fashion sketch, illustration, sketch

A/W12 Lookbook: Remember When…

November 14, 2012 By Chie 2 Comments

Bow sweater, Apple hide and seek dot dress, Flight attendant dress, Open back gold sequine party dress, Cotton lace wedding dress (All the item also available on etsy shop)

Photo credit:
Photographer: Takura Yanagi
Models: Elissa Villa and Cat Achieng
Make up and hair: Mayuko Nakamura
Clothes by Vivat Veritas
Pendants by Oslo and Alfred
Styling by me

Vivat Veritas AW12 lookbook is here! Please check out the items in my shop and etsy shop, and share the lookbook when you get a chance:) I had fun working on this though it was a lot of work.

We shot in Ishikawa-cho, Yokohama. The place used to belong to foreign ambassadors staying in Japan. The place is really lovely, and you can get in for free to look around, so If you have a chance to go to Yokohama, I recommend stopping by.

The theme of the lookbook is “Remember when…”. I wanted to focus on the nostalgic feelings of a girl who grew up in a place filled with memories but because of life was separated from it. Now she is revisiting the place. Sappy I know but since my daughters arrival, I often reflect on my own childhood. My parents still live in the home I grew up in so it feels like I never left. In the course of making this lookbook I spent some time wondering what it would be like or will be like when that house is gone or if I don’t see it for an extended period of time.

I borrowed these lovely pendants from Taren of Oslo and Alfred. She is an illustrator living in Tokyo. She and I met at the “Love Handmade” etsy event held last winter in Ginza. I’m glad etsy brought us together:)

Filed Under: blog, blogs, creation, shop update Tagged With: autumn, aw12, fall, fashion, lookbook, winter

Video: Hong Kong Fabric Shopping

October 16, 2012 By Chie 12 Comments

As I mentioned earlier last week, I had a chance to visit the fabric district in Hong Kong last month. Here are some photos and video of the place. The video was edited by Andy, which explains the captions..

I referred to the Traveller’s Yarn‘s blog post as a guide. As suggested in the post, I got off at Sham Shui Po station and looked for Ki Lung street. The Hong Kong fabric district is massive! It’s not even comparable to the Nippori fabric district. I hope to visit the place again in the future….not during a national holiday!

Filed Under: blog, blogs, travel, video Tagged With: fabric district, fabric shopping, fashion, HK, Hong Kong, ki lung street

Shop Update: Kimono Cardigan

September 10, 2012 By Chie 1 Comment

Kimono cardigan (also via Etsy)

The shop has been updated with a final summer piece – Kimono cardigan. It is a good transition piece from summer to fall. This is the last of the three Summer piece series (First one here, and second one here) I worked on with Jessica of Hapatime. She really did a fantastic job on styling and modeling the pieces, and I’m so happy with the photos! You can check out Jessica’s post here.

Filed Under: blogs, creation, shop update Tagged With: blogger, cardigan, fashion, handmade, hapatime, kimono, wrap

Shop Update: Origami Skirt

August 27, 2012 By Chie Leave a Comment

Origami Skirt (also via Etsy)

Hello! The shop has been updated with a new skirt. This is the second of the three Summer piece series (First one here) I worked on with Jessica of Hapatime. She shot these gorgeous photos while she was vacationing in Hawaii. I love the clear water and blue sky! I’ve been to Hawaii once when I was a child, and I remember ocean being very pretty. I named this skirt Origami skirt since I was inspired by Origami. I added these fish fin like pieces in front and back that hang. The skirt is very light and breezy. Check out Jessica’s post on her blog here!

Filed Under: blog, blogs, creation, shop update Tagged With: blogger, collaboration, fashion, hapatime, maxi dress, origami

Vintage Lifestyle Magazine

August 15, 2012 By Chie 5 Comments

VV Mint Chocolate Chip Dress was featured in the September 2012 issue of the Vintage Lifestyle Magazine! Vintage Lifestyle is a really cool online magazine from South Africa, about fashion, photography, decor, art and more. I love online magazines like this or N.E.E.T.. I think it’s so 21st century – and the fact everything is linked up is so helpful when I want to see the shop of my favorite products. Anyway, check out the latest issue here, I’m sure you’ll enjoy the all things eye candy.

P.S. the dress is on sale – was $90 now $65! You can get an additional 25% off with the coupon code listed in the iCandy Handmade guest post.

Filed Under: blog, blogs, featured Tagged With: fashion, online magazine, south africa, vintage lifestyle magazine

Shop Update: Early Fall Pieces

August 5, 2012 By Chie 4 Comments

Hello everyone, how’s your summer going? It’s been really hot in Japan the past couple of weeks. I don’t mind the heat as compared to the cold. The shop has been updated with many early fall pieces, five of them in total. Check them out here!

本当に毎日暑いですね！とけちゃいます。。　こんな暑い中早めな秋物をショップに追加してみました。こちらで見てみてください☆

Top & Bottom: Lilac mix knit short fingerless mitts, Middle: Lilac mix knit long fingerless mitts

Top left: Lilac mix knit circle twisted circle scarf, Top right: Lilac mix knit sheer top

Over the next week, I’ll be adjusting the shipping to a flat rate of $15 for overseas shipment (additional $4 for each additional item). This will apply to all the clothes. For accessories, I will still be shipping in regular international mail unless I receive a request otherwise. I’ve had many lost packages recently using regular international mails which does not come with tracking or insurance. Although my Shop Policy states that I am not responsible for lost or stolen mails, when a customer contacts me to let me know that she never receive a package, I usually compensate them for it. To avoid the frustration and the waiting time, I decided that all international mails be shipped via EMS (Expedited Mailing Services). It provides a tracking number and insurance up to 20,000 yen (about $230 USD). It is also faster than regular mail. On average, it delivers to the U.S. from Japan within 3-5 days. I apologize for the raise in shipping fee. It is the actual cost, and I am not charging a handling fee. With the Yen’s value remaining high compared to the Dollar it is hard to keep the price down. If you want me to ship it by regular international mail (cost is $7 per item), I will be upon request; however, I cannot be responsible for lost and stolen mails. From now on, the default shipping method will be EMS. Thanks for understanding!

配送と送料についてのお知らせです。今までは日本から海外へのお届けは普通の国際便（航空便）で配送していたのですが、今週から海外にはEMS使用と変更したいと思います。最近何件か立て続けに郵便物の損失が起こってしまって。。。一応Shop Policyとして損失や配達中に盗まれてしまった郵便物の責任は取れませんと書いてあるのですが、実際にお客様から届かないんですけど、と連絡がくるとやはり私が対応しなければいけないのが現状です。なので、今後は海外にはEMSを＄１５の送料で使用します。送料が倍になってしまって（今までは＄７だったので）申し訳ございません。どうぞご理解よろしくお願い致します。

Next week I will be updating a small collection of Harley Davidson series…

Filed Under: blog, blogs, creation, shop update, 日本語 Tagged With: accessories, clothes, fall, fashion, knit, shop, update

DIY: Old Lady’s Skirt to Bustier

August 1, 2012 By Chie 12 Comments

So a few days ago I was on the Forever 21 site, browsing around. They had this “buy one get one free” section and it was just unbelievably cheap. I added two shorts to my shopping cart, and the the total amount was $10 plus $4 shipping. For two pairs of shorts! I sat on it for a little bit and at the end, I closed my browser without purchasing anything. The fact that they were so cheap kind of turned me of, and I didn’t really want or need new pairs of cheap shorts anyway. I just felt like I did not need to clutter my closet with more things, that can be thrown away after a few wares.

Instead, I went to my closet and pulled out this old skirt. It was a hand-me-down from when I was in elementry school. I don’t remember ever wearing it, since it is a weird length skirt for an elementary school kid (midi length). Now I took a second look at the skirt I liked the grandma-ish floral print. I shortened the skirt (will show you the result in a different post) and with the left over fabric, I made this bustier. I added a built-in bra cup, so I can wear it without a bra. I modified the same pattern I drafted for this bustier and this bustier.